Brittany looked at Lance, her curiosity evident. "So, what happened that night?"
Mahomes blinked rapidly, confused. "What? What night? Lance, what are you talking about? I don't remember anything happening!"
Lance widened his eyes, feigning shock. "You've forgotten already?"
Mahomes started to fidget, scratching his head and looking around like a lost child. His obvious bewilderment made Brittany raise an eyebrow, though she remained calm, clearly amused.
Lance tilted his chin upward, pretending to recall something dramatic. "Oh, you know, that night we played Madden. McCaffrey lost 6–0 and rolled around on the floor like a toddler throwing a tantrum. We still need to protect our buddy's dignity, you know."
Somewhere far away, McCaffrey sneezed loudly. "Who's talking trash about me behind my back?"
Mahomes: "...That's it?"
Brittany immediately caught on, realizing Lance was just messing with them. She smirked, shaking her head.
After the draft, everyone had debated whether selecting Lance was the right choice. There had been endless discussions about his physique, skills, and readiness for the league. But Brittany recognized a key trait many had overlooked:
Lance's perfect score on the Wonderlic test wasn't just for show.
But seeing Mahomes' carefree, clueless expression, she swallowed her observations. Instead, she turned back to Lance.
"Patrick's a complete goofball. He'd get swindled and still count the cash for the person who robbed him. Since you're joining the team together, I'm trusting you to take care of him."
Lance: ??? Excuse me?
He glanced at Mahomes, who was nodding in agreement, as if Brittany's comment was perfectly reasonable. Lance couldn't help but laugh.
"Uh, I think you've got it backward. He's the quarterback here. I'm just the running back. Shouldn't I be the one relying on him?"
Brittany wasn't convinced. She gave Lance a knowing look. "You keep telling yourself that."
Taking a step closer, she smiled warmly. "It was nice meeting you, Lance. One of these days, I'll cook dinner, and you're coming over."
Lance grinned. "I'll be looking forward to it."
With that, Brittany headed back toward the moving truck, leaving Lance marveling at the sheer size of the vehicle. Furniture was piled high, filling the entire truck bed.
An actual move. It looked like Mahomes was bringing everything from home.
In the NFL, rookie contracts typically last four years. While some contracts are extended or cut short, most rookies complete the full term.
Rookie contracts come with lower salary caps, giving teams room to bolster their rosters in free agency. This "rookie benefit window" allows franchises to assemble championship-caliber teams while managing payroll.
For quarterbacks, this window is especially significant.
From that perspective, Mahomes was clearly in Kansas City for the long haul, at least for the next four years. His choice to settle in with everything he needed reflected that.
By contrast, Lance seemed like a tourist on a short visit, traveling light.
Turning back to Mahomes, Lance gave him a playful shoulder bump as they greeted each other properly.
Lance's bad habit of forgetting names had struck again.
The similarity between "Mahomes" and "Holmes" (as in Sherlock Holmes) was too much for Lance to resist. Without much thought, he had started calling Mahomes "Sherlock."
The funny thing was, Mahomes never asked why or corrected him. He just went along with it.
Watching Charles' car disappear into the distance, Mahomes asked, "Wait, so you hitched a ride with that guy all the way from Tuscaloosa to Kansas City?"
Lance followed Mahomes' gaze before shaking his head slightly.
"Well, sort of. That's a Chiefs fan who's poured everything he's got into supporting this team. He's put his hope, his faith—his entire life—into it."
Mahomes tilted his head, visibly confused.
Lance smiled. "All they ask for is one playoff win. Just one. Can you believe that?"
Mahomes blinked, surprised. "Just one? Come on, man. Isn't the goal supposed to be the Super Bowl?"
Lance chuckled. "Yeah, of course. The Super Bowl is the dream. But for some, it all starts with just one win."
The Super Bowl is the crown jewel of the NFL, the ultimate goal for every team and player. But for the Kansas City Chiefs, there was a deeper pain that weighed heavily on their shoulders.
Since losing the 1993 AFC Championship to the Buffalo Bills, the Chiefs hadn't won a single playoff game.
From the 1994 season through 2014, the team endured a 21-year drought—a playoff curse that haunted Kansas City. Even with Andy Reid's arrival, the Chiefs couldn't break the spell, earning the league's second-longest streak of playoff futility.
(The Cincinnati Bengals held the unfortunate record, enduring a 31-season playoff drought from 1991 to 2021 before breaking it in 2022.)
In 2015, the Chiefs finally snapped their streak, defeating the Houston Texans in the Wild Card round.
But the celebration was short-lived.
They lost their next game to the New England Patriots.
In 2016, the curse reawakened. The Chiefs lost to the Pittsburgh Steelers in their first playoff game that year.
For Kansas City, the playoffs remained a recurring nightmare.
For the city's fans—grappling with economic hardships, struggling to make ends meet, and holding on to hope—all they wanted was one more playoff victory.
Sure, they dreamed of Super Bowl glory. Who didn't? But their blue-collar reality kept them grounded.
They weren't New York or Los Angeles, with massive markets and limitless resources. They weren't Dallas or San Francisco, steeped in history and financial clout. They weren't Green Bay, whose entire town rallied behind the Packers like a sacred duty.
Kansas City was just an ordinary town. Farmers. Factory workers. People grinding every day to make it to the next.
Their wish was simple:
To grab a beer on game day, head to the stadium or a local bar, and cheer for a win. To bask in that moment of joy, that glimmer of hope, that sense of something brighter ahead.
One win was enough to keep them going.
They just didn't want to wait another 21 years.
Now, the responsibility fell to this generation of players.
Lance turned to Mahomes, his expression serious.
"But the road to a championship starts with that first win. So, Sherlock, are you ready?"
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